


Under Contract

by foobar137



Category: Phineas and Ferb
Genre: Alternate Universe - Slavery, Auctions, BDSM, Community: kink_bingo, Community: trope_bingo, Computer Hacking, Enthusiastically Consensual Sex, Evil!Monty, F/M, Indentured Servitude, Inheritance, Kink Bingo 2013, More plot than porn, Non-Consensual Slavery, Porn With Plot, Power Exchange, Slavery, Spanking, The Author's Head Is A Sad And Scary Place, Trope Bingo Round 2, Virginity, Wakes & Funerals, Way More Plot Than Porn, Whipping, coerced sex, slavefic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-16
Updated: 2013-09-28
Packaged: 2017-12-26 17:56:21
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 13
Words: 20,698
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/968604
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/foobar137/pseuds/foobar137
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alternate Universe: Slavery. Gretchen finds herself unexpectedly sold as an indentured servant in a world where that’s a euphemism for slavery; can her boyfriend Ferb rescue her and keep her safe? Meanwhile, Vanessa has been framed for a crime she didn’t commit and sentenced to indenture as well. What would Doof offer Perry for his help in freeing her from the clutches of Monty Monogram? Trope bingo: slavefic; Kink bingo: power exchange.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Auction

**Author's Note:**

> Careful with the tags. This gets darker than most of what I write.
> 
> Some of the on-screen sex is enthusiastically consensual, but the slavery isn’t, and some of the sex is coerced at best, which is why the story is tagged non-con. The rules of indenture are more or less spelled out in the first chapter, but some details show up later.
> 
> Tagged as ‘underage’ because the main characters start at seventeen.
> 
> Yes, it’s marked ‘Explicit’, and there is porn afoot, but there’s more way more plot than porn here. (Seriously. Twelve chapters and an epilogue, and there’s three and a half sex scenes. First one is in chapter four.)
> 
> If you're here looking for happy Montnessa...this isn't it. Really. The 'evil!Monty' tag is there for a reason.

Gretchen shifted her wrists as much as the cuffs would allow, and rolled her neck around to the limits of the leash attached to her collar. The leather cuffs around her wrists were attached to a leather belt around her waist; the high-tech collar was the only other thing she was wearing. Here she was, five minutes from being auctioned - how much had her life changed in one short week?

Just a week ago, she’d been living with her father, dating her boyfriend Ferb, and trying to figure out how and when she and Ferb could lose their virginities to each other. And then the horrible car crash that had taken her father’s life had torn her world asunder. With her mother dead giving birth to her, and her father an only child, custody of her - for the three months until she turned eighteen - had gone to her mother’s brother, her Uncle Bill. Bill hadn’t gotten along well with her father, but he was the closest family she had now.

The day after the funeral, Bill had signed an indenture contract for her. He hadn’t been able to look her in the eyes as the indenture induction crew had restrained her and led her away; all he’d been able to do is look away and mumble about how it was for the best. Two days later, she still didn’t know why he’d done it.

The older woman preparing the newly-indentured for auction came into the room and picked the leash of the young man in front of her off the hook holding him in place. “Come with me, dearie,” she said. Gretchen would be next.

She’d written a research paper on indenture for her social studies class last year. Her research had been correct so far on what the experience was like. She’d been given a medical exam, which had confirmed she still had her hymen while evaluating her overall health. She’d been given an IUD and then sent to a ‘preparation room’ - a cell. A recorded video told her the official version of her new legal status - her collar could not be removed except by court officials, and had a tracking device in it, along with a shocker and various sensors. She had no right to refuse a legal order from her contract-holder that would not permanently harm her. If she refused, her contract-holder could punish her as he or she saw fit. Her contract-holder was required to provide adequate food and shelter. If she chose to do so before her nineteenth birthday, she could renew her contract. Once the renewal was signed, it was under the same terms as adult indenture - five-year renewals at the discretion of the indenture-holder. She would no longer have any choice in the matter.

83% of underage indentures “chose” to sign a re-indenture before their contract expired on their nineteenth birthday. Proponents of indenture claimed that was a sign of how much indentured servants appreciated the security and comfort of indenture; indenture opponents pointed at the same rate and claimed it as evidence of coercion, brainwashing, and flat-out forgery.

Her research was pretty clear on what happened then. Typically, contracts were renewed until the servants were no longer useful (for workers) or attractive (for sex slaves), at which point they were cast out and left to fend for themselves with no useful skills or worldly goods except the pittance paid for each re-indenture. Most ended up homeless, if they couldn’t find family to help them out - but after ten, twenty, or even thirty years, they may not have any means of contacting their family at all.

She had been sufficiently outraged by what she’d found that she’d joined the high school branch of the Indenture Reform Coalition shortly thereafter. After all her research and work for the IRC, she was not amused by the irony that she now found herself naked and about to be auctioned.

She’d probably be bid on as a sex slave, sold to a middle-aged man who wanted to feel young again. If she was lucky, she’d be a present to a teenage boy from his parents. In either case, the virginity she’d been planning to give to Ferb wasn’t going to last the night. Being a virgin would drive up her price, meaning more money for her uncle. The going rate for an attractive teenage virgin was in the range of fifty to eighty thousand dollars; if she'd just slept with Ferb, it would have cut that number in half.

The older woman came back in and unhooked Gretchen’s leash from the wall. “This way, dearie,” she said, gently tugging on the leash; Gretchen had no choice but to follow. “Now, just so you know, there seems to be something up with the bidding computers, so final bids are low today. So don’t take it personally.”

The woman held a scanner up to Gretchen’s collar, and her vital statistics showed up on a screen on the wall: 5 foot 3 inches tall, 133 pounds, 34D bra size, auburn hair, blue eyes, virgin (hymen class 3). Gretchen sighed at all the numbers - each of them likely to drive her price up. Even the hymen class - 3 meant ‘likely to cause painful first intercourse but not impede it’, and some men considered it the most valuable category.

“Okay, you’re a virgin. I think we go for the innocent look for you, then. So no heels and very light makeup. Open wide, dearie,” the woman said, holding up a ball gag. Gretchen sighed and opened her mouth, and the gag was fastened behind her head.

“Turn around,” the woman said, and Gretchen turned to face away from her. Her hands twitched in their cuffs as the woman took a leather strap and wrapped it around her elbows, pulling them together. They couldn’t touch with her wrists still bound to the belt, but the effect made her generously-sized breasts stick out even more. “Oh, they’ll love that,” the woman said. “Turn back, please.” The woman applied a small amount of makeup, just enough to smooth her out a bit.

“Just one little bit left,” she said, and wiped a cold pad over Gretchen’s nipples, making them turn stiff and stick out. “There we go. Now you go out there and get yourself a good contract, okay, dearie?”

The woman led her over to a door on the other side of the room; the door slid open, and a male guide in a tuxedo waited there. He scanned Gretchen’s collar as well, nodded, and accepted the leash from the woman.

He led her down a short hallway; the door at the other end slid aside, and she was on a glass-enclosed stage. She could blurrily see a sweaty, overweight middle-aged man in a suit sitting directly in front of the stage, frantically tapping on a bid controller as the man in the tuxedo started reciting her vital statistics. She tried to look around, but her eyes kept jumping back to the sweaty man. She knew he was trying to bid on her, and the thought of spending the year and a half until she turned nineteen - or even longer, if he could force her to re-indenture - serving him made a chill run down her spine.

The guide made her turn around; her eyes were watering now, and without her glasses, she couldn’t see very well to begin with. She’d been told her glasses would be delivered to her contract-holder; hopefully, he or she would let her have them.

She turned full circle and was facing the sweaty man again; he was shouting at an apologetic-looking man in a vest. The guide said, “And, sold!” and led her out the other door from the stage.

“You did well,” the guide said, “but the bids came in really low. We’re having computer problems, but by law we have to run the auctions anyway. But, on the plus side, whoever indentured you won’t get as much money.” He led her into a room where he checked a readout. “Okay, your contract-holder specifies...no gag,” he said, removing the gag from her mouth. She stretched her jaw and licked her dried-out lips.

“Minimum restraints for handover, and some clothing,” he continued. He unclipped the leash from her collar, removed the strap from her elbows, and unlocked her wrists from the belt, removing the belt entirely. He pulled a long T-shirt from a cabinet and handed it to her; it was thin and white, and barely covered her ass, but it was the most covering she’d had since she’d arrived at the indenture facility two days ago. Once she’d put it on, he took her wrists and clipped the cuffs together behind her back, then reattached the leash to her collar. He dropped a pair of thin sandals on the floor for her to step into.

“Let’s go meet your new contract-holder,” he said, leading her down a short hallway to a waiting room. Her contract-holder was looking at her; she recognized him immediately, even without her glasses.


	2. Just Doing My Job

**Earlier the same day**

Perry the Platypus jumped as his watch beeped. _A new mission. Time to go._ He looked up at Phineas and Baljeet, busily working on their laptops. _I think they’ve got this well in hand. And if they don’t successfully rescue Ferb’s girlfriend, then I’ll see what I can do to pick up the pieces._

He put his hat on and slid toward the secret panel next to Phineas’s desk. Phineas nodded to him as he passed; Perry tipped his hat as he vanished into the tunnel system. _Life got so much simpler once they figured things out. And it doesn’t really matter any more, now that Heinz is too busy to try to take over the Tri-State Area._

He slid down the tube, coming to a rest in his chair as always. The screen turned on, and Perry felt the familiar shame at what he saw.

Lieutenant Monty Monogram sat in his command seat, as always, ready to give Perry the day’s mission. And, as always, his indentured servant, Vanessa Doofenshmirtz, was kneeling next to the seat.

_At least he’s letting her have clothes now. Although I’m not sure the Slave Princess Allyra outfit from Space Adventure 6 really counts as ‘clothes’._

Vanessa stared out at Perry, and he sighed. It was all his fault she was there. Monty had pressed him to plant the evidence that had been used to convict her and sentence her to forced indenture; Perry knew he should have refused and made Monty go through with his threats. Better to be reduced back to a mindless pet than to be used to forcibly enslave an innocent young woman just to get revenge on her father.

_I’m sorry, Vanessa. I know that doesn’t mean much to you. But I truly am._

Monty had then gotten Perry to rig the bidding on Vanessa’s contract; as an indentured criminal, she could only be bid on by government agencies. Perry had arranged a preferential auction where OWCA got a preferred bid as arresting authority, and then made sure she was assigned to Monty as personal servant.

He hadn’t realized the depths of Monty’s plans for the young woman until the next day, when she’d been kneeling next to his chair, naked and tightly bound, whip marks covering her. Eventually, as she’d become more and more compliant, more and more broken, the welts had become fewer, the restraints less confining. Now, six months into a four-year indenture, her only restraint was the chain from her collar to Monty’s chair, and she’d been allowed scant clothing for several weeks now.

Perry shook his head and refocused on Monty. He really should pay attention to the briefing, but it was always the same these days. Doof was trying to ‘subvert the indenture system’ - trying to free his daughter.

_Some day, Monty, I will make you pay for what you made me do._

* * *

Heinz sighed. Perry was due any minute now, and what little progress Heinz had made would go away. This was his life now. He’d try to find some way - any way - to rescue Vanessa from... _him_. He’d been working on a device to neutralize the tracking and alarm systems in her collar, but his heart really wasn’t in it any more, and it wouldn’t be remotely near complete when Perry showed up for the daily press of the self-destruct button. It was all for the best, anyway, since if he made any real progress he was likely to end up arrested and indentured himself. Taking over the Tri-State Area was one thing, but messing with the indenture system got you in serious trouble.

The doorbell rang, and Heinz got up and opened the door. Perry walked in, tipping his hat to the disheartened evil scientist.

“It’s over there,” Heinz said, waving vaguely in the direction of his partial collar-disable-inator. “Go ahead and blow it up. I don’t know that I have the heart to stop you any more.” He sat on the couch and sighed deeply. “It’s ironic that I find myself wishing that Roger were still mayor. Here I hated my brother and his political popularity so much, but now that he’s retired, I’d gladly use his influence to help Vanessa. My ex-wife blames me for all of this - she's filed another request to cut off my alimony, you know.”

Perry jumped up onto the couch next to Heinz and put his arm around him.

“Thank you, Perry. It’s just hard. _He_ sent me another video of the things he’s doing to Vanessa. I don’t know why he keeps sending them - I can’t watch them, it’s too painful, but just knowing that he’s done something else he’s proud enough of to send it to me is bad enough.”

Perry winced.

“If only I could get her loose and sneak her to Drusselstein. There’s no indenture there, so they won’t extradite runaway servants.”

Perry nodded, and patted Heinz on the arm.

“I know you work for justice, Perry,” Heinz said, and the platypus looked away. “You know that Vanessa’s innocent. If you find any way to free her...I’ll swear off evil forever. I promise.”

Perry put out his paw to shake on the deal; Heinz shook.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The first pass at this chapter ended up as the story 'Just Doing My Job', but I pulled that out because it was far too fluffy for the A plot.


	3. Rescue

Ferb tried not to pace or look nervous as he waited. If this worked, he’d be walking out of the Indenture Transfer Facility with Gretchen, and not looking back. If not...he wouldn't leave this building a free man. Forced indenture as punishment for crime had been one of the first things to happen once the indenture laws had passed, and the first crimes they’d been applied to had been attempts to subvert the indenture system. Hacking their computer system, as Phineas and Baljeet had done, would certainly qualify.

He ran his hand through his shaggy green hair, trying to keep calm. He’d seen her naked for the first time when she was up on the auction block; while she’d taken her shirt off and he’d had his hand on her bra before, that was as far as they’d gone. He wasn’t even sure she’d seen him, between not wearing her glasses and her focus on the overweight man who’d grabbed the front-and-center seat. Ferb had seen the man’s notes; he had a picture of Gretchen in them, and had clearly specifically wanted to bid on her, but fortunately Phineas and Baljeet’s trickery had let Ferb’s bid win. The man had been yelling at an attendant about the problems with the bidding computers when Ferb had left to go sign the paperwork and write a check.

The door on the far side of the room slid open, and a tuxedo-clad man led Gretchen in on a leash. She was just as beautiful as ever, even covered by the loose white shirt. Slightly below-average height, short auburn hair, piercing blue eyes, and more than a bit on the chesty side - it was like somebody had asked Ferb for his ideal woman, and then provided her, and that wasn't even getting in to how well their personalities meshed. She blinked suddenly, and her eyes went wide as her mouth dropped open.

Ferb rushed over to her and took her in his arms, saying, “Thank God, you’re really here. I was afraid I’d lose you forever.” She tried to hug him back, but her wrists were bound behind her. He reached around and unclipped her cuffs, and she clamped her arms around him.

“I thought I’d never see you again,” she murmured into his shoulder.

The grinning man in the tuxedo cleared his throat. “Mr. Fletcher? I just need you to sign this receipt, and she’s all yours.”

Reluctantly, Ferb let go of Gretchen and took the offered clipboard. He skimmed the paper quickly; it was a standard triplicate form indicating he was taking receipt of one (1) indentured servant per the terms of the indenture forms he’d already received when his winning bid had been accepted. He signed at the bottom; the guide tore the yellow copy out of the middle and handed it to him, along with Gretchen’s leash and a small package containing her eyeglasses.

Ferb handed Gretchen her glasses, which she put on. “I can see again! I haven’t had these for two days now.”

“Let’s go home,” Ferb said, removing the leash from her collar, taking her hand, and leading her out of the room.

“How did you manage to win the auction?” Gretchen asked as they walked toward the parking garage.

“I got lucky,” Ferb said. “They’re having computer problems today, and a lot of bids weren’t going through. I got a bid in relatively low, and then apparently all the bids higher than that got rejected. I don’t know how it happened, but I’m not about to complain.”

Gretchen shuddered. “That was too close. There was a guy front-and-center who _really_ wanted to buy me. I’m happy it was you instead.”

“Me too.”

They arrived at Ferb’s car, and he unlocked her door before going around to his own. Gretchen unbuckled the cuffs on her wrists as Ferb drove out of the parking garage.

On the way home, Gretchen looked over at him. “So, now that we’re out of there...was it really just luck?”

Ferb smiled thinly, and looked at the attractive young woman next to him. _It wasn’t just because she’s gorgeous that I fell in love with her. I love her for her brains as well._ “Phineas and Baljeet may have had something to do with their computer problems today. But we can’t ever tell anyone about that.”

“No, of course not. Should we have pretended we didn't know each other?"

"No, that would have looked suspicious when they try to figure out what happened to their computers. We want to look like a couple who just genuinely got lucky."

* * *

_There’s nothing to be nervous about,_ Gretchen told herself as Ferb turned onto Maple Drive. _Ferb’s parents think you’re wonderful. They’re not going to blame you for your uncle selling you._

Ferb pulled into the driveway, and parked the car. Gretchen found herself frozen from fear as Ferb walked around to open her door. He looked at her, concerned. “It’s okay,” he said. “They’re all waiting for you.” He held out his hand to help her up. With a wan smile, she took it.

As Ferb opened the front door, Isabella, Phineas, Ginger, and Baljeet all turned toward them from their seats in the living room. “Gretchen!” Isabella and Ginger shouted as one, rushing to greet their friend. She found herself briefly swarmed and overwhelmed by the relief flowing from her friends.

Drawn by the noise, Ferb’s parents came in from the kitchen. Gretchen looked at them, concerned, but they both broke into wide smiles. “Nicely done, Ferb,” his father said.

“You didn’t spend _all_ of your college fund, did you, Ferb?” his mother asked.

“There were computer problems, so I won with a remarkably low bid,” Ferb said. "Seven thousand."

His mother nodded. “Good to hear. First time I’ve been happy to hear about computer problems. Dinner’s almost ready, Gretchen; are you hungry? I seem to remember hearing they don’t feed you well there.”

Gretchen said, “No, they don't. I didn’t have much of an appetite anyway.”

The older woman came over to her and gave her a hug. “I can understand that. It’s okay now. You’re safe here.”

* * *

Baljeet and Ginger had chosen not to stay for dinner, but Isabella wouldn’t pass up an opportunity to spend more time with Phineas. The couple had been going out just a little longer than Ferb and Gretchen had, and Gretchen knew they’d already taken advantage of the Flynn-Fletchers’ relaxation of the rules on keeping bedroom doors open. Indeed, after dinner, Isabella practically dragged Phineas upstairs once the dishes were taken care of. Ferb’s parents - Gretchen supposed she really should get used to calling them Linda and Lawrence as they always insisted - were quietly talking at the other end of the kitchen.

“Gretchen, could you come here for a minute?” Linda asked.

Gretchen walked over to see what they wanted.

Lawrence, looking somewhat embarrassed, said, “Um...not that I want to get into your and Ferb’s business, but we need to know what you would like for sleeping arrangements. He may be your owner at this point, but he’s still our child, and this is still our house. If you’d like to sleep on the couch, that’s fine, or we can bump Ferb into Phineas’s room while we sort out a long-term plan.

“Or...if you and Ferb agree to share a room, I don’t think we can really argue against it under the circumstances.”

Gretchen looked across the room at Ferb, who raised an eyebrow and smiled at her. “I don’t really want to be alone tonight, if you don’t mind,” she said.

Linda nodded. “I understand.” She gestured Ferb over. “Ferb...are you okay with Gretchen sharing your room? Or would you rather bunk with Phineas for the night and we can figure out something longer-term tomorrow?”

Ferb looked at Gretchen, his eyes full of love and hope. “If she’s willing to share with me, I’d be honoured to do so.”

Gretchen grabbed onto his arm. “I am.”

* * *

Ferb entered his room wearing his pajama pants. Gretchen sat in his bed, wearing one of his shirts as a nightshirt. Perry was sitting on the end of the bed; Ferb picked him up and set him outside the door, saying, “Not tonight, Perry. Maybe Phineas will need some company now that Isabella’s gone home.” He closed the door and sat down next to Gretchen, putting an arm around her shoulders.

She melted into him briefly, then pushed him down onto his back so she could curl up next to him. “Tonight, Ferb...just hold me?” she asked, her eyes moist.

“Absolutely,” he said, gently stroking her hair with his free hand. Her shoulders shook as the tears she’d been holding in for the past week tore through her. He whispered reassurances in her ears as she shuddered, and eventually the trembling stopped as her breathing slowed. He reached over and turned off the light, then wrapped his free arm around her and tried to join her in sleep.

* * *

Perry snuck down the hallway. Gretchen had been rescued, so Ferb wouldn’t need him to hold onto tonight after all. He’d go spend the night with Phineas, but he had business to take care of first. He slipped through a secret panel in the staircase and down to his secret lair. Lieutenant Monogram had gone to his quarters already, so nobody was watching.

Perry slipped into the indenture facility's computers and pulled up the access logs for the day. Phineas and Baljeet were good, and had left almost no traces in the systems. Perry wanted to be sure, and removed what few traces they had left behind. Hopefully, nobody would be able to prove it was anything but a random computer error now.

Job done, he slipped back upstairs and into Phineas’s room. Phineas was curled in a ball on his bed, looking lonely. Perry slid in under an arm, and Phineas sighed peacefully as he slipped into a more relaxed sleep.


	4. Lawyers and Love

Gretchen woke up to a view of a bare wall and a feeling of somebody resting back-to-back with her. She was lying on her side in a narrow bed - Ferb’s bed, her brain filled in. Rolling over to her other side, she saw that Ferb was facing away from her. She could hear his slow breathing as he slept.

She’d cried herself out in his arms last night, wept for her lost father and how close she’d come to losing her freedom, until she’d fallen asleep. Now she was awake, and in her boyfriend/owner’s bed, wearing one of his spare shirts. And the idea of continuing where they’d left off before her father’s accident was awfully tempting right about now. She needed to feel loved, to show Ferb how much she loved him, to make love to him before the chance got stolen again. The fact that he hadn’t taken advantage of his authority over her was arousing; the knowledge that he could was a turn-on in an entirely different way.

She curled up against him, feeling his warmth through the shirt, then decided she wanted to be even closer. She sat up and took the shirt off before pressing her bare skin against his as she slid an arm around his chest.

He woke slowly at first, pressing back against her in his sleep before rolling over and wrapping her up in his own arms. His eyes flickered and he smiled sleepily as he looked at her from a few inches away. His hand stroked up and down her back before his eyes suddenly widened.

She leaned in to kiss him. “It’s okay. I just wanted to get closer to you, and the shirt got in the way.”

“But...I don’t want you to feel like you have to...”

“I don’t. I want this.”

“Are you sure? I’m willing to just hold you as long as you need me to,” he said.

"I just got a rather sharp lesson in the hazards of waiting too long. We almost lost this chance, and I don't want to lose another one."

"We've got plenty of time now, though."

She reached up and took his chin in her hand, forcing him to look her in the face. “Ferb, if you’re trying to talk me out of this because you’re not ready right now, that’s okay. Tell me that and I’ll put the shirt back on and go take a cold shower. But if you’re just trying to confirm that I really want this, consider it confirmed and show me what you’d like to do to the naked and willing slave girl in your bed.”

Ferb’s eyebrows went up, then he smiled. "I would very much like to make love to her." He leaned in to kiss her some more, trailing kisses down her neck, across the collar, and onto her shoulders as his hand slid up and down her bare side, leaving a trail of quivering sensation behind as it passed. He gently rolled her onto her back, his hand now sliding over her stomach to cup her breast. She gasped as his thumb brushed over the nipple, rapidly stiffening under his touch.

“I want to see you,” she said with a hitch in her voice. She slid her hand along his chest to the waistband of his pajamas, then started pulling them down. His erection twitched slightly as her hand brushed past it, nestled in his forest-green pubic hair. He kicked the pajama pants the rest of the way off, and now they were both naked in his bed.

She pressed herself to him, feeling his skin, so hot against her own, and his erection firm against her hip. His hand slid along her bare back, cupping her ass and pulling her leg up to wrap around his thigh. She could feel herself getting wet with desire, and then his fingers slid over her hip and found her pussy from behind. She whimpered into his neck as he gently stroked up and down, from her entrance to her clit and back.

“Ferb...” she whispered. “I need you. Now.”

“Just enjoy this,” he said. “Come for me. I want to make sure you get off before I do something that’s going to hurt. Come for me, love.”

Gretchen surrendered to the feelings he was causing in her. One finger slid into her, with agonizing slowness; she pressed herself against it, trying to get it deeper. Ferb chuckled evilly as he slid it out of her, then back along to circle her clit, causing her hips to buck. He held her tightly, his skin ablaze against her own, the height difference between them gone as they lay side-by-side. She pressed against his fingers, and then a stroke across her clit sent her over the edge, clinging to Ferb tightly as her orgasm swept over her, pulling him tight as if to merge them into one being.

She caught her breath and rolled over onto her back, making Ferb loosen his grip slightly. His eyes were full of wonder as he looked at her.

“Wow,” she said when she found her voice again. “That...was amazing.”

“It looked like it,” Ferb said.

“Your turn now?”

Ferb nodded. “We can just...”

“No, Ferb. I want you. All of you. Inside me. Now.” She reached down and stroked his cock, making his breath catch.

Ferb gently pressed her thighs apart, kneeling between them. His fingers slid up and down her slit again, gently entering her as if confirming she was wet and ready.

“Ferb...if you don’t...I’m going to come again without you...” she said, thrusting up against his fingers.

With a low chuckle, Ferb pressed his cock against her opening.

“Oh...yes, Ferb. Yes.”

She hissed as he thrust into her. The pain, expected but still unexpected, felt like something tearing into her, and Ferb paused to look her in the eyes with a questioning expression.

“I’m fine. Just give me a moment to get used to this,” she said.

He pushed himself up on one arm, the other sliding between them to rub against her clit. The pain was fading quickly, replaced with arousal as her body adjusted to the man rubbing her from inside and out.

“Okay,” she said. “Keep going.”

Continuing to stroke her clit with his fingers, Ferb began to gently thrust in and out of her. The pain was rapidly forgotten as she found herself hooking her heels around the backs of his thighs and urging him to go faster and deeper and harder.

He pulled his hand from between them, and she looked up at him, slightly disappointed until she realized how close he was. She pulled him down to her, holding him as his thrusts reached a crescendo. Finally, he peaked, giving a barely-audible gasp and burying himself inside her as his cock pulsed out his orgasm.

She wrapped her fingers in his hair as he collapsed on top of her; after a moment, he pushed himself up and slid out of her. She shivered at the loss of her covering and the sudden emptiness inside of her.

“Do you need more?” he asked, his hand sliding down along her side.

She nodded, not entirely trusting her voice, and his hand slid between her thighs and began to caress her again. His finger slid inside, and this time he inserted two and even three fingers, causing her to buck and moan as he took the fluids - his _and_ hers now - from inside her and rubbed them around her clit.

The excitement of having had Ferb inside of her and now trying to bring her off again was more than she could take, and again she pulled him to herself tightly as her thighs clamped down, trapping his hand as she moaned into his shoulder.

Spent, she gently pulled his hand out from between her legs, then curled up in his arms to rest for a while.

* * *

Ferb lay back in bed, thinking about their first time. He loved her so much, and things had gone so well. Now he needed to see about rebuilding her life. She was going to need clothes, school supplies, re-registration in school...so much more. She stirred in his arms, leaning up to give him a quick kiss. “Mind if I go take a shower?” she asked.

He shook his head.

“Care to join me?”

“I’d love to,” he said, “but I don’t think the rest of the house would appreciate it so much. Maybe when we get our own place, or at least somewhere where we have our own bathroom.”

She laughed and reached above him to grab the shirt she’d slept in. “Okay. I’ll go take the first shower, then.” She sat up and donned the shirt, then blew him a kiss on her way out the bedroom door.

Downstairs, the phone rang. A moment later, he heard Phineas clomping up the stairs. “Ferb, phone call. Some lawyer,” he said through the door.

Ferb got out of bed, opened the door, and took the cordless phone from Phineas. “Hello?” he said into it.

“Hello, am I speaking to Mr. Ferbinand Fletcher?” the dry voice on the other end of the line said.

“Yes, yes you are.”

“Excellent. Did you purchase the indenture contract of a Miss Gretchen Schneider yesterday?”

Ferb started to worry. Had their scheme been found out? He kept his voice calm as he said, “Yes, yes I did.”

“Very good. I am Isaac Campbell, the attorney for Miss Schneider’s late father. May I speak with her?”

Ferb barely managed not to sigh from relief. “She’s in the shower right now. May I have you call her back?”

“Actually, could the two of you come meet me at my office? Any time today would be fine.”

“I think we can be there in about an hour, will that do?”

“That would be excellent, Mr. Fletcher. I look forward to meeting you.”

Ferb hung up the phone and lay back on the bed again. A few moments later, Gretchen returned wrapped in a towel.

“You can steal one of my shirts if you’d like,” he said, “and we’ll see if you can borrow a pair of shorts from Phineas until we get a chance to stop at a store. His are more likely to fit you than mine are. Your father’s lawyer called - he wants to meet up with us for some reason, so we’ll go do that, then go get you some clothes.”

She gave him a quick kiss and said, “Oh, Mr. Campbell? I’ve never met him, but I’ve heard a lot of good things about him from Dad. Let’s go see what he has to say.”

* * *

The secretary smiled at them. “Mr. Campbell will see you now,” she said, gesturing to the door behind her.

Gretchen followed Ferb into the office, and her eyes went wide when she recognized the man behind the desk. He was the sweaty man from the auction. He smiled at her and indicated a pair of chairs in front of the desk.

“Miss Schneider,” he said in a dry but comforting voice, “I’d like to express my condolences on the loss of your father. Jim Schneider was a good man and a good friend.”

Gretchen’s eyes watered, and she thanked him in a small voice.

“Also,” the lawyer continued, “I need to apologize. One of my duties in managing your trust fund was to purchase your indenture contract if it were ever an issue, and I was unable to do that. I attempted to, but there was some sort of computer problem. Fortunately, Mr. Fletcher was able to purchase the contract. Jim spoke very highly of you, Mr. Fletcher, and felt his daughter had made an excellent choice in dating you.”

Ferb nodded his head. “Thank you, that’s nice to hear.”

One of the things Mr. Campbell had said finally connected in Gretchen’s brain. “Excuse me. Did you say ‘trust fund’? I wasn’t aware of any trust fund.”

“When your mother, Samantha, died giving birth to you, your father was awarded a significant sum of money in settlement for a malpractice and wrongful death lawsuit. He placed most of the award into a trust fund for you; as is required by law, the trust fund will become fully available to you when you turn nineteen, assuming you are eligible at that time. In addition, when your father died, all of his assets went into a separate but similar trust.”

Gretchen knew what ‘eligible’ meant. Indentured servants couldn’t own property; her research had found several cases where people had been indentured while underage, and then (allegedly) forced to renew their indenture, just so that the next person in line could steal their inheritance.

“How much money are we talking about?” she asked, the pieces of a puzzle finally coming together.

“The trust fund from Samantha Walker Schneider’s death, after careful management by your father, is now worth approximately thirty-four million dollars. In addition, your father’s assets were worth another fourteen million dollars. You were not aware?”

“Dad never talked about money, and if I asked, he just said there was ‘enough’.”

Mr. Campbell laughed. “That there was.”

“Thank you,” Gretchen said. “That makes certain things make more sense now. If I for some reason am forced to renew my indenture, who would those funds go to?”

Mr. Campbell’s smile vanished. “Your uncle, William Walker. Which would explain why he indentured you. I tried to call you the day after the funeral, to schedule a meeting; he said you weren't in at the moment and he didn't have your cell phone number handy. From the timestamps, he filed the indenture paperwork about half an hour after getting off the phone with me.”

Gretchen nodded. “I hadn’t been aware of any reason why he’d have done it. Now I know.”

Mr. Campbell turned to Ferb. “May I inquire what your plans are for Miss Schneider, Mr. Fletcher?”

Ferb sat up, and said, “I had intended to let her continue as close to her normal life as possible. School starts in a week and a half, and she’ll attend normally. Afterwards, her indenture should expire partway through her freshman year of college. Will the trust fund be able to pay for her college expenses? My parents were a bit concerned about having to pay for college for three people all of a sudden.”

“Unfortunately, no,” Mr. Campbell said. “As the contract-holder, you’re required to pay for her expenses, and by law her trust fund can’t provide funds to her contract-holder unless the trust fund holds the contract itself.”

Ferb nodded. “I suspected as much. I have no desire or intention to renew the contract; if I could cancel it today, I would.”

Mr. Campbell said, “Actually, today wouldn’t be a good choice. Custody would go back to her uncle, and he could re-indenture her before I could get a petition filed to remove his custodial rights. Once she’s eighteen, then we should see about cancelling. That will depend on which judge the case ends up with - some will cancel pretty much any contract that comes before them, some won't.

“A question for you - would you be willing to sell her contract to the trust fund? It means that someone acting on its behalf would have to handle any financial transactions for her, but the trust fund would then be able to pay for things for her.”

“I’m sorry, no,” Ferb said, shaking his head. “Nothing personal, but...her uncle just tried to sell her as a slave. I’ve just met you, and while I’m sure you’re looking out for her best interests, right now, I don’t trust anyone - _anyone_ \- with her contract. Until it’s expired or cancelled, I will hold onto it for dear life.”

Mr. Campbell nodded appreciatively. “Understandable. In that case - what can I do to help you two?”

Gretchen said, “I need clothes. A larger bed would be nice. And I’ll probably need a new laptop for school, unless we can get my old one back from Uncle Bill. But clothes are the top priority right now, since all I have is what I can borrow from Ferb and his brother, and one white shirt that they gave me when I was sold.”

“I can contact your uncle and see if I can obtain any personal effects from him, if you’d like. Any items left in your father’s house would clearly belong to the trust now, and be inaccessible while Mr. Fletcher holds the contract.”

“If you could get my things from Uncle Bill, that would be wonderful. The clothes there would be nice, but I’d really like to get back my laptop and cell phone.”

“I’ll see what I can do and contact you later today, then. I'll also have a larger bed delivered - is queen size okay? My gift to you, in apology for being unable to purchase your contract.”


	5. Computer Access

Vanessa poked listlessly at the computer in Monty’s quarters. He was off working, and had recently given her access to his computer while he was away. “For good behavior,” he’d said, and she’d felt pleased with herself for an instant before quashing the feeling. _It’s just the Stockholm Syndrome talking_ , she thought. _That’s what he wants. He wants you to fall in love with him before the indenture ends._

But, now she had access to a computer. Unfortunately, it had been locked down so much that she couldn’t do much with it at all. Any social media or communication site was off-limits; pretty much any way that she could try to communicate with the outside world was unavailable. So she had her choice of various types of mindless pap, but nothing substantial; news sites were similarly out-of-bounds to keep her ignorant and dependent on Monty for information. She’d pondered trying to bypass the restrictions, but they appeared to be applied by the network rather than this computer. She’d have to crack into Monty’s account to get further, and while she did have some skill at making computers do what she wanted them to, she wasn’t anywhere near good enough to do that without any tools.

A rattling noise from the vents over her head distracted her from the stupid kids’ show she currently had showing. She looked up just in time to see that a vent had been opened; a small item flew out of the darkness toward her, and she caught it by reflex. It looked like a thumbdrive attached to a small USB passthrough; puzzled, she looked up to see the vent closing and a flash of teal behind it.

She separated the passthrough from the thumbdrive and plugged the thumbdrive in. It was empty except for a program and a text file labelled ‘Read me!’. Intrigued, she opened up the ‘Read me!” file.

**Vanessa:**

**I know you’re innocent, and were framed by Monty.**

**I think, with your help, we can prove your innocence and take him down. We need proof that he ordered Perry to frame you, but that can only be found from Monty’s account. If there's a video of the briefing where he gave the order, that would be ideal.**

**The other device with this thumbdrive is a keylogger; put it between the keyboard and the computer. Then, after Monty has logged in, run the program on this drive to retrieve his password from the keylogger. After you have the password, remove the keylogger and hide it so you can use it again if he changes his password.**

**There's another thumbdrive in the vent; to communicate with me, put whatever data you want to give me on it and hide it where you got it from.**

**Make sure you only log into Monty’s account when you’re sure he isn’t using it! If he’s logged in at two places at once, a security alert will trigger.**

**Good luck. I hope I don’t need to tell you to keep this hidden. If Monty finds it, we’re both in trouble. It’s magnetic, if that helps you find a good hiding place for it.**

**Sincerely,**

**A friend**

Vanessa felt a surge of hope within her. Somebody on the outside was trying to help. She popped the keylogger in place, then went to look for a good hiding place for the thumbdrive.

* * *

Ferb carefully drove home after their shopping trip. They’d bought her some clothes; she was wearing a light sundress that showed her off quite well, in a steel-blue shade that did incredible things to her eyes. They’d also bought her a few special pieces to wear at night, which Ferb assiduously tried not to think about while he was driving.

They arrived home just as Mr. Campbell drove up. “Oh, excellent, I was hoping to catch up with you. I was able to get all your belongings without paying anything - your Aunt Karen told me to take them. Apparently she did not approve of her husband’s actions; neither did your cousins. Your aunt asked me to apologize to you for what had happened.”

“Thank you so much,” Gretchen said as Ferb carried the box into the house. “This will make things so much easier.”

“Glad to help,” Mr. Campbell said. “The mattress should be showing up shortly - I took the liberty of picking up some new sheets for you as well.”

* * *

Gretchen was annoyed to find that her cell phone had been smashed, but everything else seemed okay. She fired up her laptop to find several days of email awaiting her. One recent one caught her eye; it was from Bill and Karen’s older daughter, her cousin Becky, who was two years younger than her.

**Hey Gretch -**

**Glad you got your stuff back. I’m real sorry about what my Dad did. Mom’s totally pissed at him about it - she’s talking divorce. I guess it had been brewing for a while, and this was the last straw. :( We all knew he didn't like your father, but nobody guessed he'd sell you off to get back at him. Total dick move. 8== >**

**I’m also real sorry about your cell phone. Dad tried to give it to me as an upgrade to my old one, since he said you wouldn’t need it any more. I threw it at him, saying I’d rather have my cousin back. He ducked and it hit the wall and broke. ;P**

**The lawyer said you got bought by your boyfriend? XD Is it that hot guy you brought to the Fourth of July barbecue, with the green hair? Is his hair green _everywhere_? Details, girl, I want details!**

**Keep me in the loop, ‘kay?**

**Beck**

Gretchen smiled. She’d talk to Ferb about fixing the phone, or getting a new one. It was nice to know that some of her family was on her side here. She started writing up a reply to Becky.

* * *

The new mattress arrived just before dinner, and as they were getting ready for bed, Gretchen asked Ferb what he’d like her to wear to sleep that night.

“Um...the green lace thing that we picked up today would look nice on you.” he said.

“Sounds good,” she said, picking it and a robe up and preparing to head to the bathroom.

“Before you go,” Ferb said, “what was up with Isabella tonight? She seemed grumpy about something.”

Gretchen snickered. “She asked her parents if she could sleep over here tonight, since I get to. Her father asked if he should look into indenture contracts for her.”

Ferb winced. “So, no, I take it?”

“Nope. She’s not happy about that.”

“She’ll figure something out eventually,” Ferb said.


	6. Don't Mess With Nana

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I envision Nana Walker as being played by Diana Rigg, similarly to how she plays Lady Olenna Redwyne on Game of Thrones.

Two days later, Gretchen got a call from Mr. Campbell. “Your grandmother was admitted to the hospital last night with breathing issues. They don’t think she has too much time left. She’d like to see you.”

“I’ll talk to Ferb, but I don’t think that’ll be a problem,” she replied.

* * *

Gretchen led the way to her grandmother’s room; the old woman had finagled a private room somehow, and smiled at her as they entered.

“Oh, good, you made it,” Nana Walker said. “How do I look?”

Gretchen looked her over. Her skin was drawn and pale, and the oxygen tube into her nostrils was clearly not just an accessory. “Like hell,” she said.

Nana snorted. “Sounds about right. So, tell me your side of this story,” she said, pointing at Gretchen’s collar.

Gretchen shrugged. “I’m not really sure. Two days after Dad’s funeral, the inductors showed up, tied me up, and threw me in a truck. After Ferb bought me, I found out that I’m apparently in line for a fat trust fund if I can keep from signing a renewal contract.”

Nana’s eyes narrowed. “Yes, your father did well with the money he got from the doctor's insurance company. Which was the main reason he and Bill didn’t get along; Bill, for some reason, thought he deserved some of the money from his sister’s death. He probably has this justified in his head that he’s just getting back the money that’s rightfully his. Foolish boy. I should have indentured _him_ when I had the chance.”

Ferb covered a smirk with his hand; Gretchen didn’t bother hiding hers.

“So, Ferb,” Nana said, turning toward him, “what are your intentions toward my granddaughter? Isaac said you refused to sell her contract to the trust fund.”

“Yes,” Ferb said, “I don’t trust anyone but myself with it. I intend to hold onto it until it expires or we can get it cancelled. And then...,” he looked at Gretchen, “I intend to stay with her, if she’ll have me.”

Nana nodded. “Good answer. I assume you’ve lowered her resale value by now, anyway.”

Gretchen blushed, but Ferb said, “It’s just like a new car. Resale value gets cut in half as soon as you take it for a drive.”

Nana laughed and turned back to Gretchen. “I like him.”

Gretchen looked at him and smiled. “I do too.”

* * *

Vanessa let herself go, surrendering to the orgasm that Monty wanted her to have, cursing him in her head all the while. She screamed and clutched at him as her vision went white, holding him tightly as he removed his fingers from her clit and kept thrusting into her. She rode the crests of the orgasm, and then felt his as well as his hips pinned hers in place and he let out a low cry.

_Damn, but he’s good at that. I don’t know what’s worse - that he knows when I’m faking, or that he does such a good job of giving me the real ones._

With a smile that was only half-feigned, she said, “Thank you, Monty,” as he required her to after any orgasm.

He kissed her, probing her mouth with his tongue, and then broke away to look her in the eyes. “You’re welcome, Vanessa,” he said. He’d begun using her name instead of just calling her ‘slave’ recently. _Trying to get me thinking this is just a normal relationship, and not legally-sanctioned rape._

He rolled off of her and onto his back, pulling her over to rest her head on his chest. She knew how the routine went from here, and he followed it exactly. Two minutes later, his grip loosened as he went to sleep, and she got up to clean herself off in the bathroom.

He was out cold as she returned, so she slipped over into the living room and turned on his computer. She’d gotten his password off the keylogger that afternoon: VanessaMonogram#1. _I should have guessed._ They’d dated briefly when she was still in high school, but she’d broken it off when he started getting too controlling and tried to pull her away from her family. He’d kept bothering her for years, claiming they were destined to be together. It wasn’t until the police showed up to arrest her that she’d realized the depths to which he’d sink to claim her as his own.

She logged into his account, tensing as she waited to see if an alarm was triggered, but nothing happened.

_Let’s see what I can find in here,_ she thought, and dug into his archived files with a will.

* * *

Nana died three days after their visit. Ferb and Gretchen went to the funeral, and she saw the family reaction to her collar - and the glares at Bill when people saw it. She wasn’t even the only servant there - she was just the only one there as family, rather than property of family. Aunt Karen brought Becky and Anna, and after personally apologizing to Gretchen, pointedly sat with her rather than with Uncle Bill. Mr. Campbell was there as well, which Gretchen thought odd.

Various people spoke briefly about Nana, her long life, and all the things she’d accomplished. Finally, Mr. Campbell got up to speak.

“Eleanor Walker was a unique individual, and she asked me to do something unusual here. She asked me to read her will at her funeral - she said she had some final messages in there she wanted to make clear.”

He read through the boilerplate information before getting to the bequests.

“Barring the exceptions I state below, I leave my entire estate to my three granddaughters: Gretchen Schneider, Rebecca Walker, and Anna Walker, to be divided evenly between them. In the event that any of them are under the age of nineteen, their share of the estate is to be held in trust until their nineteenth birthday. In the event that any of them are ineligible to inherit due to death, indenture, or any other cause, that person’s share of the estate is to be donated to the Indenture Reform Coalition.

“I leave the amount of one hundred thousand dollars to the Indenture Reform Coalition, in hopes that this horribly-abusive system can be fixed or abolished.”

Gretchen noticed that there were more people glancing at her, and glaring at Bill, who was fuming.

“To Ferbinand Fletcher, the man who rescued my granddaughter, I leave seven thousand dollars as reimbursement for the cost of purchasing her indenture, and the same amount again in gratitude.

“To my son, William Walker, I leave thirty pieces of silver. He will know why.”

Bill stood up and stormed down the aisle and out the door, everyone in the funeral home watching him go.


	7. Things Hit The Fan

Perry dropped into his chair with a sigh. Heinz had pretty much given up; he was building -inators just so Perry had a reason to come blow them up, without ever intending to use them. But, Monty still had to keep sending him out as part of showing Heinz who was boss.

The monitor turned on; apparently Vanessa had fought back a bit more, because she was naked again, and fresh welts covered her breasts. Monty looked slightly worried, which was unusual; given Vanessa’s state, Perry would have expected him to be insufferably smug. _Did Monty find the keylogger?_

“Agent P,” Monty began, “we’re dispatching a backup agent to Dr. Doofenshmirtz’s today. Your services have been requested by the Indenture Transfer Facility; they apparently had some computer issues about a week ago, and they said you did such a good job last time, they’d like you to help them again.”

Perry began to sweat. The last time he’d worked on their computers, it was to plant the evidence used to convict Vanessa, under the guise of helping them track down the computer break-in he’d committed. And a week ago would put it at right about the time that Phineas and Baljeet had done their work to help Ferb purchase Gretchen.

On the plus side, this meant Monty hadn’t found the keylogger, he was just stressed because any dealings with the Indenture Transfer Facility meant Monty’s crime could be revealed.

“I’m sure you’re aware just how important trust in their computer systems is, so please help them in any way possible.”

Perry nodded, and the screen turned off.

* * *

Perry knocked on the office door of Eddie, the head system administrator at the Indenture Transfer Facility. A voice within yelled, “Come on in!” so Perry turned the knob and opened the door.

The room inside was dark and covered in anime posters and empty soda cans. A tall bearded man said, “Hey, Agent P. Good to see you again. Come here, let me show you what I found.”

Perry sat in the chair next to the man and looked at the screen, which displayed a file comparison tool.

“So, about a week ago, we had an issue where legit bids were being rejected due to packet corruption. It looked like it was just a random bit error in one of the core routers, but I grabbed a copy of the logs anyway just in case. So I was looking at them last night, and happened to compare them to the current logs, and I found that the logs on the router got changed after I grabbed my copy. I can’t find anything on where the change came from, but this pretty clearly shows that _somebody_ was messing around in there, and tried to cover their tracks.”

Perry hoped he looked interested, and not terrified. His attempt to conceal the boys’ actions had accidentally brought their efforts to the attention of Eddie.

“But I can’t track the info from here. All I know is that the old IPs in the logs are international - somewhere in Brazil - so I can’t get info on the machines they came from. The new ones are garbage - they’re in RFC 5737 example space, so clearly junk. Can you help?”

Perry nodded. Things were still open enough that he could find somebody else to pin things on, perhaps. Or declare failure and say that the trail went cold.

“Here’s the logs I have,” Eddie said, handing him a thumbdrive. “Let me know what you find, okay?”

* * *

Gretchen had always looked forward to the first day of school before, but this year she was quite a bit more concerned than usual.

“It’ll be fine,” Ferb said. “I will be with you as much as I can, and your other friends will be there to cover when I can’t. After a couple days, the people you deal with should be used to it.”

“I know. It’s just...I’ve seen how the school’s servants get treated. It was part of my research paper. And I know that there are folks who’ll assume anyone with a collar is school property.”

“I’d give you pepper spray if I could, but...”

“I know, illegal to arm a servant.”

“Best I can do is this,” he said, handing her a small box with a recessed button on it. “It’s a pocket panic button. If you press this, it’ll send an alert to my phone with your location, and we’ll come help as quickly as I can.”

She smiled at him and leaned in for a hug. “Thank you,” she said. “That means a lot to me.”

* * *

Gretchen tried to slip through the hallways unnoticed. This was the one spot in her schedule where Ferb couldn’t easily accompany her, and while it was reassuring to have Ginger with her, it wasn’t quite the same.

“Just relax,” Ginger was telling her. “If you look like you don’t belong here, people will think something’s up.”

“Maybe I should just do online school for the rest of the year,” Gretchen replied.

“Hey, looky what we got here,” a boy said, stepping into her path. She looked up at him - a long ways up, as he was well over six feet. “You’re a new servant, ain’t you?”

“She’s not yours to play with,” Ginger said.

“I wasn’t asking your opinion,” he said with a sneer. Gretchen tried to step around him, but he blocked her. “I asked you a question, _servant_ ,” he said.

“I’m not school property,” Gretchen said, far more quietly than she’d intended.

“Am I supposed to care about that?” the boy said, starting to reach for her.

“Yes,” Ferb said from behind the boy. “Keep your hands off of her.”

The boy turned around and looked down at Ferb, who was still a couple inches shorter than he was. “And you are?”

The other students in the area scattered, emptying a circle around the four.

“Her owner. She’s here with my permission and under my protection.”

“Ooooh. Your _protection_. Am I supposed to be scared?” The boy reached out to push Ferb's shoulder.

His hand never connected. Ferb slipped under his arm, twisted it, and flipped him across the hall.

The boy shook his head as he lay in a heap. Ferb looked at him and said, “Yes.”

The crowd around them started to giggle, and a teacher arrived telling everyone to break it up and go to class.

Gretchen gave Ferb a quick hug and walked with him the rest of the way to class, separating just at the door.


	8. Jackpot

Gretchen opened her email to find another message from Becky.

**Hey Gretch -**

**Dad lost his job. (I’m sure you’re totally heartbroken. </3) I’m not sure exactly what happened, but he’s been getting really weird since Mom kicked him out of the house here. I guess his boss got sick of it.**

**The divorce is supposed to be final in a few weeks. It looks like, with Dad going nuts, Mom’s going to be able to get full custody. The judge called me and Anna into her chambers to talk to us about what we wanted, without Mom or Dad there. We both said we don’t trust Dad any more and don’t want anything to do with him, and apparently the judge agrees with us.**

**Mom’s throwing a party when it’s all final. You and Ferb are totally invited.**

**Hope to see you there!**

**Beck**

* * *

Perry handed the thumbdrive to Eddie, who plugged it in and looked at the results.

"Damn. Dead end, huh?" the sysadmin said, and Perry nodded sadly.

He'd very carefully traced the leads from the logs, and found that Phineas and Baljeet had done a better job than he'd expected. The machine in Brazil they'd come in from had had its logs wiped before they left, and there was no way to track them from there.

"Ah, well. Thanks for trying, Perry. Can't win 'em all, I guess."

Perry nodded, and shook hands with Eddie, trying to keep the grin off his face until he was out of the building.

* * *

Ferb sat back in his desk chair and looked over at his girlfriend, sitting on the bed working on her own assignments. They’d been living together for two months now, and he hadn’t realized just how much he could love her. She looked up at him, smiled, and blushed a bit.

 _I could go over there right now, and make love to her, and she’d go along with it willingly. Eagerly, even._ He knew he could command her to, for that matter, but he wouldn’t do so. No matter how tempting the idea may be. _Three weeks until she’s eighteen, and we can safely request that the court terminate her indenture. And then we can be together as equals._

“Ferb?” she said.

He looked back at her; she was biting on her lower lip as if concerned about something. He nodded to indicate she had his attention.

“I...you’re going to think this sounds silly.”

Ferb shook his head.

“I want you to be my owner. Just for a bit.”

“I am,” Ferb said.

“Not what I mean. Never mind.”

Ferb went over and picked up the stack of books next to her on the bed, setting it on the floor. Taking its place, he put his arm around her. “What do you want? Seriously.”

She looked down into her lap, where her fingers were twisting together nervously. “Back before...this,” she said, touching her collar, “I fantasized about it occasionally. Being your slave. Having to do whatever you want. Being tied down to your bed. Being punished for mistakes.”

Ferb raised an eyebrow. “Punished...how?”

In a quiet voice, she said, “Spanked, maybe. Whipped. Other things.”

Ferb held her close, thinking for a moment. _Well, then. I guess I’m not the only one thinking along those lines._

In what he hoped was a commanding voice, he said, “Go lock the door.”

Gretchen’s eyes, filled with wonder, snapped up to his, and she jumped off the bed, crossed the room, and locked the bedroom door.

“Strip,” he ordered, thinking as quickly as he could about what he had handy to work with.

Without hesitating, Gretchen pulled her shirt off over her head, dropping it in the laundry basket. Her bra followed immediately afterwards, and he noticed her pink nipples were standing out. She turned slightly away from him to pull off her jeans and panties, giving him an excellent view of her tight ass as she bent over, and then she was stark naked. Even after the two months since he’d first seen her naked, up on the auction block, he was still amazed at how beautiful she was. She turned back to him, searching his face for new orders.

He pointed toward the desk. “Your cuffs are in the bottom drawer. Put them on.”

She knelt down by the desk, retrieving the leather cuffs she’d last worn when she was sold. Carefully, she buckled them onto her wrists, then came over and knelt down in front of Ferb, her eyes low.

“Your safeword is ‘Halt’,” Ferb said. “If it gets to be too much, just say that and I’ll stop. Understood?”

Gretchen nodded.

“My plan for today is to spank you, then tie you to the bed and tease you for a while. We’ll worry about bigger sessions once we have more time to plan, but is that okay for now? If you say yes, that’s the last time you get any say in the matter until we’re done or you call Halt.”

Gretchen nodded.

“Say it,” Ferb said.

“Yes, master,” Gretchen whispered.

“Stand up and turn around, wrists behind your back.”

Gretchen complied, and Ferb stood and clipped her wrists together. Grabbing her shoulder, he roughly turned her around and inspected her naked body, front and back. His hand slid down to a nipple, which was already stiff, and gently pinched it, causing her to inhale sharply as he pulled it away from her body.

“You’ve been a very bad slave,” Ferb said, in a low, menacing voice. Gretchen’s eyes snapped open as she looked at him, concern on her face.

He continued, “You’ve been hiding information from me. If you’d told me you wanted this, we could have been doing this for months now. You need to be punished for that, don’t you?”

Gretchen nodded silently.

Ferb sat down on the bed, then gestured to her to lay across his lap. Gretchen hesitated only a moment before doing so, sticking her bare ass up as if begging for a spanking.

“Fifteen spanks, I think,” Ferb said. “You are to count them and thank me after each one.” He raised his arm and swatted her left ass cheek hard.

“Ah!” she cried out. “One. Thank you, master.”

By fifteen, she was holding back tears, and Ferb was wondering if she was going to call her safeword, but she rode it out. He slid his fingers between her thighs and found that she was almost dripping wet; apparently she’d enjoyed it more than he’d expected.

“Stand,” he said, and she obeyed quickly. He reached over and unclipped her wrists, then reattached them in front of her. “Lie down,” he said, pointing to the bed.

As she lay down, he quickly rooted through his dresser. He found three neckties he disliked, and sat on the bed next to Gretchen, using one to tie her wrists to the top of the bed and the other two to tie her legs widely apart to the bottom corners. He watched her tugging at the bonds, and made sure the knots wouldn’t tighten to cut off circulation.

“So, here are your orders for now. You are not to come until I tell you to. If you do, I will find a way to punish you, and you _won’t_ enjoy it as much as you enjoyed the spanking. Do you understand?”

“Yes, master,” she whispered.

His mouth slipped over a nipple, suckling and nipping at it, as his hand slid up and down her inner thigh, approaching but not quite touching her pussy and then backing off. He trailed kisses down her stomach, across the closely-trimmed auburn hair between her legs, and down to her clit, caressing it with his tongue and making her push her hips up into his face. “Oh, God, yes, there,” she moaned, and he could see that she was getting close. He glanced up at the clock as he pulled away, lightly ghosting his fingers along her leg as she groaned in need. _Another twenty minutes or so, I think._

He moved back up to her breasts, using his mouth on one and his hand on the other, alternating occasionally as Gretchen shook them at him. He kept her on edge, approaching but not quite touching the areas she wanted him to most, caressing all of her that he could reach as she squirmed beneath his touch.

It was time. He stripped his own clothes off, Gretchen watching him intently but silently. Once he was naked, he climbed on top of her, feeling her underneath him as he had so often since they had become lovers. This time, however, she couldn’t wrap her arms and legs around him as she did to urge him deeper inside of her. He positioned himself at her entrance, saying, “Beg for it.”

“Oh, God, Ferb. Please let me come. Please put your cock inside me and make me scream out your name. Let me come, please. I’ll do whatever you want. Anything. Go to school naked. Fuck you on the front lawn. Anything. Let me come, Ferb.”

“You’d do all that anyway if I told you to.”

She twitched, barely holding herself back from an orgasm. “I would,” she whispered. “Even without the collar, I would, Ferb.”

“You’d be my slave even if you’d never been sold, wouldn’t you?”

She breathed a barely-audible “Yes.”

“Then come for me, my slave,” he said, sliding into her, and she threw her head back and cried out, pulling as hard as she could against the restraints as a massive orgasm swept through her. He knew he wasn’t going to last long either, and only a few thrusts later he joined her in ecstasy.

When he came back to himself, he reached up and freed Gretchen’s wrists from the bed frame; she wrapped her cuffed arms around his neck and pulled him close.

“That was incredible, Ferb. Absolutely incredible.”

He kissed her gently, then slid off of her to untie her ankles. Reaching up, he unclipped her wrist cuffs and then lay back in bed, pulling her close to himself. She curled up against him, their flushed and sweaty skin sticking together as they came down from the experience.

* * *

Vanessa had lost several weeks to being chained to the bed at night and unable to get to the computer, but eventually Monty had calmed down and let her loose again. She’d waited until he was sound asleep, and had been trying to poke around the files he could access while leaving the smallest trace possible.

On an obscure server labelled BRFRCSTR04.VARC, she found directories indexed by letter, containing video files indexed by date. She looked under F, and opened one of the videos; it was a briefing where a fox called Agent F was being briefed by Colonel Capital.

_Jackpot._

Quickly, she flipped over to P, and found videos of Perry being briefed by Monty. Backing up to just before her arrest, she opened up videos until she saw Monty giving Perry orders the platypus clearly did not want to follow.

* * *

_“You_ **_will_ ** _do this, Perry. This isn’t a request. This is an order. Fake up some evidence that Vanessa Doofenshmirtz committed a crime that will get her sentenced to indenture. And then get her assigned to me. I know you’re capable of this.”_

_Perry shook his head ‘no’ emphatically._

_“If you don’t do this, I’ll have you reverted. You’ll be just a normal, stupid platypus again. I’ve often wondered if there’s still a glimmer of the old self inside a reverted animal agent. Some little kernel of intelligence, screaming its way into oblivion.”_

_Perry crossed his arms and shook his head again._

_“Maybe after you’re reverted, I’ll see what your host family’s been up to. I’ve got footage of the boys violating all sorts of laws - everything from construction safety and zoning to animal welfare. I bet I can find something they can be indentured for. Their little girlfriends are with them all the time, so they’ll probably end up collared too. Isn’t one of them involved with the IRC? I wonder if I can tie her to that recent vandalism at the transfer facility. And you’ll be too stupid to save them.”_

_Perry’s eyes closed, and he hung his head._

_“I want the proposal for how you’re going to do this on my desk tomorrow. Hardcopy only. We wouldn’t want any electronic records lying around.”_

* * *

The video ended, and Vanessa sat back, shocked. She hadn’t realized just how much Monty had had to threaten Perry with to get him to comply.

Shaking her head, she copied the video onto the thumbdrive. Shutting down the computer, she pulled out the thumbdrive and hid it under the desk, ready to go into the vent tomorrow.


	9. Courts and Accusations

Ferb squeezed Gretchen’s hand and gave her a comforting look.

“Thanks, Ferb,” she said, squeezing back. “I’m just worried. Mr. Campbell said this judge doesn’t much like him.”

Ferb nodded acknowledgement.

The bailiff stood up. “First case: Fletcher, request for termination of indenture re: Schneider.”

Ferb and Gretchen stood up; behind them, Mr. Campbell joined them. The three went to the table in front of the judge's bench.

“All rise,” the bailiff said, and they did so.

“Tri-State Area Federal Indenture Court is now in session, Honorable Jonathan Santiago presiding,” the bailiff said as the judge entered the courtroom.

The judge, a tall man with a receding black hairline and a thin black mustache, sat behind the bench and said, “Be seated.”

As they sat, the judge looked at the docket, then glared at Mr. Campbell. “Isaac. You again. Why are you here? This isn’t one of your trust funds owning the contract.”

“I’m here to provide consultation for the contract-holder, Your Honor,” Mr. Campbell said. “The indentured servant in question does have a trust fund which I administer, but I was unable to purchase the contract.”

The judge scowled. “Very well. Mr. Fletcher?”

Ferb stood up and said, “Here, Your Honour.”

“Why should I terminate the contract of...Miss Schneider, son?” the judge said, looking down at the docket.

“I purchased the contract with the intent of cancelling it when possible, Your Honour. She was - is - my girlfriend...”

The judge interrupted him. “And you seriously think that once that contract is gone she won’t be gone as well?”

“I do, Your Honour...”

“How much did Isaac offer you to do this?”

“Isaac? Oh, Mr. Campbell?” Ferb asked. “He offered to purchase the contract, but I don’t want to let go of it...”

“Of course not, son, you’ve got a hot redhead who’s at your beck and call. You’d be a fool...”

“That’s not what I...” Ferb said.

“Don’t interrupt me, son,” the judge said harshly, and Ferb cursed himself. Mr. Campbell had warned him about that. “You took on a responsibility when you signed that contract,” the judge continued, “and if you don’t want to fulfill that responsibility then you can sell the contract. But I’m not going to terminate the indenture just because you don’t want it any more, son. You need to learn how to deal with this responsibility. Request denied with prejudice.” The judge banged his gavel. “Next case.”

They filed out of the courtroom. “I’m sorry, Gretchen. We can try again...” Ferb said.

“No, we can’t,” Mr. Campbell said. “That’s what the ‘with prejudice’ means. We can’t make another termination request, even if you were to sell her contract to the trust fund. It’s my fault. Judge Santiago and I don’t get along - I shouldn’t have come at all, having me there just put him in a bad mood to start with.”

“Why don’t you get along?” Gretchen asked.

“We have differing opinions on indenture. He considers having a trust fund purchase the contract of the person the funds are in trust for to be an abuse of the indenture process. He claims he's never seen a case where someone was indentured just to steal their inheritance, or where someone was forced to renew their indenture.”

Gretchen nodded. “I can see why you’d have issues, then. So where do we stand now?”

“You’re indentured for another eleven and a half months, until you turn nineteen. Unless something truly bizarre happens to make _him_ ,” he gestured toward the courtroom door, “reconsider.”

* * *

Perry arrived in his lair by tube as usual, only to find that he wasn’t facing Monty after all. Monty’s father, Marshal Francis Monogram, sat in the command chair today instead.

“Good morning, Agent P,” Marshal Monogram said. “Almost like old times, isn’t it?”

Perry nodded with a puzzled look on his face.

“I suppose you’re wondering why I’m briefing you instead of Monty. Monty’s suspended due to an investigation into alleged planting of false evidence. It seems somebody broke into Monty’s account and..er, "fabricated" a video implicating him in falsifying the evidence used to convict Vanessa Doofenshmirtz. I’m sure he'll be back tomorrow - the JAG investigator owes me a favor, so it’s all being dealt with on the QT. But Monty’s suspended for today. They think the perpetrator somehow got into his computer in his quarters here, so I’d like you to go investigate it and make sure it’s clean."

Perry nodded.

"This will blow over soon enough, and hopefully Monty will record another one of those _fascinating_ videos. I never realized Vanessa was so flexible, although she didn't exactly have much of a choice the way Monty was tugging on those straps. She must have gotten that from her mother's side. I may need to look into that, but that's for another time. Monogram out.”

The screen winked off, and Perry cursed under his breath. He’d sent the video to the Judge Advocate General’s office, but he’d forgotten to take into account the pull that Marshal Monogram would have. _Hopefully I haven’t put Vanessa in danger._

He hopped a tube to OWCA headquarters, and walked to Monty’s quarters. He knocked on the door, which slid open, revealing Vanessa, naked. She frowned at him. “Hey, Perry,” she said, “Monty’s not here. He’s off talking to investigators - apparently they finally found some evidence that I’m innocent.”

Perry tipped his hat and gestured in toward the door; Vanessa stepped aside and let him in. The door slid shut behind him, and Perry walked over to the computer in the living room.

Vanessa looked at him suspiciously. “Let me guess,” she said. “They’re trying to figure out where the evidence came from more than whether I’m actually guilty.”

Sadly, Perry nodded his head. He reached into his fur and pulled out a thumbdrive, which he handed to her.

She looked at it, then up at him. It was the one she’d sent the video out on. “Perry...where did you get this?”

Perry pointed at the vent.

Vanessa stared at him for a moment, then a wide smile broke over her face. “You’re the one? Why?”

Perry reached over and turned on the computer; when it came up, he brought up a text editor and typed, **Because it’s my fault you’re here. I'm sorry.**

“No, it’s not, Perry. Monty as much as threatened to kill you and enslave your family. I don’t blame you, Perry.”

**Still my responsibility. I made a deal with your father. If I get you freed, he gives up evil.**

“Huh. Dad still worries about me?”

**It’s all he thinks about.**

Vanessa leaned down to give Perry a hug. “Thank you. Even if nothing comes of this and Monty’s dad squashes the investigation, I’m happy to know you’re on my side.”

**I’m not sure where else to go with the evidence. I have another copy.**

“Talk to my Dad about it? He may have some ideas.”

* * *

Gretchen came downstairs for breakfast, enjoying the pleasantly-unscheduled Saturday morning. Isabella sat at the kitchen table, eating a bowl of cereal, with bags under her eyes and a huge smile. After months of discussion and argument, she’d finally been allowed to spend the night, and she’d immediately taken advantage of the opportunity.

“You look like you didn’t get a wink of sleep last night,” Gretchen said. “Phineas kept you up _all_ night?”

Isabella chuckled tiredly. “Yes, but not how you’re thinking. He tosses and turns a lot in his sleep, and it kept me awake after we finally settled down for the night. But... _totally worth it._ He worked _really_ hard at making it up to me this morning..."

"Yes, I heard," Gretchen said. "You were loud enough that your _parents_ probably heard you _across the street_."

Isabella blushed. "Sorry. Anyway, he’s talking to his parents about a larger bed now. Even an air mattress, there’s plenty of room on his floor.”

“From the sounds this morning, you’d have popped an air mattress.”

“Ooh, sounds like a challenge, Gretchen,” Isabella said, waggling her eyebrows.


	10. Offers

Ferb sat in the diner, waiting for Phineas to return from the bathroom and for Gretchen and Isabella to meet them. A bedraggled man with an unkempt beard came up to them and said, “Fletcher. Can I talk to you for a minute?”

Ferb looked at the man, and suddenly recognized Gretchen’s Uncle Bill. Ferb’s eyes narrowed, and he nodded curtly.

“I’ve got a deal for you. If you can...convince...Gretchen to sign a renewal, I’ll make it worth your while. A cool million dollars.”

Ferb gave him a glare that, if looks could kill, would have put Bill on the floor in an instant.

“Two million,” Bill said.

“No deal. For any price,” Ferb said through gritted teeth. “Now leave before I do something I’ll enjoy too much to regret.”

Bill gave him a contemptuous look, then shook his head. “Your loss, kid. We aren’t done with this. I’ll be back.”

Phineas came up behind Bill. “Who’s this, Ferb?”

Bill turned and walked away.

“What was that all about?” Phineas asked.

“That’s Gretchen’s uncle. He’s still after her inheritance.”

Gretchen and Isabella entered the diner, with Gretchen looking like she’d seen a ghost.

“Ferb, did I just see who I think I did?” Gretchen asked.

Ferb nodded, sadly.

She slid onto the seat next to him, and he wrapped his arm around her protectively.

* * *

Perry rang the doorbell of Doofenshmirtz Evil Incorporated. Heinz opened it, wearing his lab coat over an old T-shirt and polka-dotted boxer shorts.

"Good morning, Perry the Platypus. I don't even have an -inator for you today."

Perry handed him a thumbdrive and pointed toward the computer.

"Pushy. Sheesh. Is this the latest video from Monty, and he's told you to make sure I see this one?”

Perry shook his head, and pushed Doof toward the computer.

“Fine, fine.” Doof plugged in the thumbdrive, which came up with one video file. Doof took a deep breath and double-clicked it, then sat there stunned as he watched Monty force Perry to frame Vanessa.

Doof turned to Perry with his eyes wide, then grabbed the platypus in a hug. “Thank you, Perry. I can pass this on to OWCA’s internal affairs...”

Perry emphatically shook his head to indicate this was a bad idea.

“Did you try that already?”

Perry nodded.

“Let me guess. _Francis_ made sure nothing happened.”

Perry nodded again.

“Fine. We’ll try from a different angle. My brother Roger may not be mayor any more, but he still _knows_ people. I’ll see what I can do with this. We had a deal - I’ll hold up my end of it. No more evil for me. Except against people who deserve it. Like Monty and Francis.”

Perry gave him a grin that could only be described as evil.

* * *

Vanessa closed her book as she heard the door open. _He’s back_ , she thought, and a chill went over her that was very different from the ones she had had all day. Those were due to him not allowing her clothes any more in his quarters; this one was because she knew he’d been cleared, and he was going to take out his frustrations on her.

She’d put the keylogger back in place after Perry had “found” the virus on the computer. Monty had had to change his password, so hopefully she’d be able to get the new password by the time she could get access to the computer again. He hadn’t done anything to her the night before - it had almost been like he was frightened of her suddenly. It had been her first night without him insisting on sex since he’d first claimed her.

She got up from the chair and knelt before him; he had a terrifying smile on his face, so she carefully looked down at his feet.

“They’ve decided the video is a forgery, and I’ve been reinstated,” he said. “Tonight, we celebrate.”

_Dammit. Hopefully Dad has more luck than Perry did._

“Go fetch your cuffs. Wrists and ankles,” he continued.

She jumped up and went to the nightstand on her side of the bed. She’d learned obedience quickly; her first rounds of resistance were met with the shocker in her collar, and she had _no_ desire to feel that again. Whippings could be erotic, but the collar was just agonizing.

Four leather cuffs waited in the nightstand; she buckled them on quickly, then returned to him in the living room. He’d pulled the whipping post out of the corner and was limbering up with the single-tail whip. _Oh, shit. That one hurts._

She stretched her arms out to the top of the post, and he locked her wrists in place. “Turn around,” he said, and she turned so her back was to the post. Roughly, he pulled her ankle out and locked it to the end of a spreader bar; her other ankle followed, and now she was bound in an inverted-Y position and completely exposed to his whip.

He reached out and caressed her breast, his thumb flicking over the erect nipple. She tried to tell herself it was just due to the cold, but she knew better. This part was painful, but by the end the pain became...not really pleasure, but arousal. She always came hard after a whipping now, and parts of her looked forward to them.

Snapping his fingers as if he’d forgotten something, he trotted into the bedroom, returning with two clamps attached to a chain. They went onto her traitorous nipples, and she whimpered at their bite. He slid his hand between her legs, laughing at how wet she was. She blushed in shame. She shouldn’t get turned on by this, she knew; that was what he wanted. Her body and mind betrayed her, though, and she pressed down against his hand between her legs, striving for contact on her clit.

“Ah-ah-ah,” he chided, pulling his hand away. “Not yet. You know what you get first.”

She nodded, breathing heavily, as he picked up the whip again. The first swing hit the top of her breasts, and she hissed at the pain. She didn’t like this whip so much; it took too long to change from painful to thrilling. She much preferred the multi-tail flogger, which hit with more of a _smack_ than the _cut_ of this one, and warmed her up much faster.

The second hit came on the underside of her left breast, and she cried out, cursing herself for the pleased look on his face as she did. Another slash hit the bottom of her right breast, and she winced but kept from shouting. Looking down, she saw the other problem with this whip - the welts were already starting to come up. He always liked this one after anything he saw as a threat to his ownership of her, as if to say that it marked her as his property.

He worked down along her body, raising marks on her stomach. By the time he got to her inner thighs, the endorphins had taken over, and she felt like she was floating, each hit turning her on just a bit more. She was jolted back to herself as he tugged on the chain between her nipple clamps; her eyes snapped open to see him standing naked in front of her, and he leaned down to claim her mouth in a deep kiss. His hand again slid between her legs, rubbing across her sopping pussy and up again to her needy clit. She tried to keep his fingers there, pressing against him with what little reach she had in her bondage.

“You look ready for more,” he said with a grin, and she could only nod in response. He knelt down and unlocked the ankle cuffs, then reached up and detached her wrist cuffs from the pole but not each other. Grabbing the link between them, he pulled her into the bedroom. Eagerly, she lay on the bed and lifted her wrists to the headboard, where he locked them to the bed.

“Yes, master,” she found herself moaning. “Please. Take me.”

“Now that’s what I like to hear, Vanessa,” he said, climbing between her widely-spread thighs and sliding himself inside of her. His hips pressed against her inner thighs, causing the whipmarks to hurt in a way that turned her on even more. She wrapped her legs around his hips and thrust back against him, pressing for deeper and deeper penetration, for him to fill her as much as he could.

She could feel him getting close, and the thought pushed her over the edge. She cried out helplessly as her orgasm tore through her. She pulled against her bonds, trying to wrap her arms around him and hold him, and with a low moan she heard him peak as he spurted inside her.

His breathing starting to slow, he lifted himself off of her. “Thank you, Monty,” she managed to say as he ran his fingers through her hair.

“No, thank _you_ , Vanessa. Your submission to me is the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”

Vanessa cursed herself for the warm feeling that thought gave her as he unlocked her wrists from the bed.

* * *

In his dark office, Eddie poked at the logs one last time. The original attacker had left them a dead end in Brazil, but he’d thought of a new angle to try to track them down with. He found the ingress logs from when they came back in to try to cover their tracks. _And...interesting. These come from an OWCA computer. Perry’s, actually. No wonder the intrusion-detection never triggered. We gave him free access when he was looking into that previous break-in._

_Maybe it's just a coincidence. But why would Perry be in my systems otherwise?_

_If Perry was up to no good this time...what about the time before that?_


	11. Application of Force

“So, I was thinking, Ferb...” Gretchen said, sitting with her boyfriend on a park bench watching the ice skaters on the pond. Christmas was a week away, and school was winding down before winter break.

Ferb raised an eyebrow in response.

“My dad’s house is closer to Danville University than yours. And Mr. Campbell is keeping it in good shape, but it would be better if somebody lived there. So, I’m thinking that next year, the two of us move in there together.”

Ferb raised both eyebrows. “Technically, I’m not sure it’s allowed, since I’m supposed to be supporting you and not the other way around.”

“So you pay rent. It’s just for a few months until I turn 19, and then I’m free and the house is mine anyway.”

Ferb nodded. “If you’re interested, we could rent rooms to Phineas and Isabella as well.”

Gretchen pursed her lips. “I’d have to think about that.”

“If you’re willing, I could sell your contract to your trust fund. It’d make the money easier.”

“I thought you said you wouldn’t do it.”

“I think, at this point, we can trust Mr. Campbell. But if you don’t want me to, I won’t.”

She squeezed closer to him. “But then we lose the excuse for me sleeping in your bed every night. And letting you tie me to the bed and ravish my helpless body.”

“I’m sure we can arrange for that to happen anyway,” Ferb said with a lascivious grin.

“Fletcher, I need to talk to you,” a voice from behind them said. Turning, Ferb saw Bill, wearing a trenchcoat and looking less haggard than the last time, standing a few feet behind the bench.

“I don’t think we have anything to say to each other,” Ferb said coolly.

“We do. You’re going to sign a renewal contract.”

Gretchen said, “Even if he does, I won’t.”

Bill showed them a pistol from his trenchcoat pocket. “Yes, I think you will.”

Ferb and Gretchen both sat still and stared at Bill. “That’s not necessary,” Gretchen said. “If it’s money you need, once I get access to the trust funds I can give you some.”

“It’s not about the money any more. It’s principle now,” Bill said, gesturing with the lump in his pocket. “Walk, that way. We’ll talk more when we get there. Look casual and don’t try to draw attention. If one of you tries to get heroic, I’ll shoot the other one.”

Gretchen let herself be led, thinking about ways out. They reached a building a block or two away, and Bill stepped ahead of them to unlock the door. Casually, she slipped a hand into her pocket when Bill couldn’t see, and pressed the panic button.

Ferb’s phone rang. “Don’t answer it,” Bill said. “Shut off the phone and put it back.”

Ferb pulled the phone out of his pocket, saw the message on it, and slid his finger to forward it before shutting off the phone.

* * *

Perry slipped through the ventilation ducts of OWCA headquarters, and found that Vanessa had put the thumbdrive back. _Looks like she got Monty’s new password after all,_ he thought.

He left a new, blank, drive and returned to his lair, then plugged the drive into his computer. On it, he found the video of Marshal Monogram telling him that he was quashing the investigation into Monty’s actions. With a smile, he copied the video into his stash of incriminating data, then pulled the stick out and headed for the newly-renamed Doofenshmirtz Good, Inc.

Heinz was busy working on a Make-Everyone-Happy-Inator. Perry rolled his eyes at it; Heinz wasn’t really any better at not-evil than he was at evil.

“Ooh! More evidence! Roger passed the last bit on to a judge in the indenture courts that he knows, and apparently the guy was furious. What have you got?”

Perry put the thumbdrive into Heinz’s computer, and together they watched Marshal Monogram talk about the previous video being “fabricated”, and how a JAG officer who owed him a favor was quashing the investigation.

“Oh, Roger will love this one. Thank you, Perry,” Heinz said. “I just want you to know that, even if this doesn’t work out, I am truly grateful for everything you’ve done.”

Perry smiled back at Heinz, then was startled as his phone let off an alert sound. Puzzled, he pulled it out and looked at it; it was a message from Ferb.

**Ferb Fletcher: Fwd from Gretchen Schneider: PANIC BUTTON PRESSED. LOCATION: 133 W CYPRESS AVE**

“What, what’s up?” Heinz asked.

Perry tipped his hat to Heinz, then dived out the window, deploying his hang-glider.

As he glided down, he heard Heinz behind him, yelling, “THANK YOU, PERRY THE PLATYPUS!”

* * *

"This won't work," Ferb said. "We won't sign."

Ferb had to admit, his bargaining position wasn't great. He and Gretchen were tied to chairs, facing each other across a table with two indenture renewal contracts on it. One of them, Bill had forged their signatures on, but he'd apparently decided he needed their real signatures.

"Oh, but you will," Bill said. "And then everything will be right again."

"Even if we do, we'll take it to court and claim it was under duress. You can't keep us captive for nine months until she turns nineteen." Ferb looked over at Gretchen, her eyes wide over the ball gag. Bill had gagged both of them after tying them to the chairs, and had only loosened Ferb's gag to try to convince him to sign.

"Once you sign, I can take it to court and try to get _my_ money back."

"It's not _your_ money. It never has been."

Bill looked at him wildly. "It should have been. Samantha would have wanted it that way, until _he_ stole her away from me."

Ferb cocked his head. "He?"

With a sneer, Bill said, " _James Schneider._ The man who stole my big sister's heart and took her away from me. And then _she_ ," he pointed at Gretchen, "killed her. I loved my sister so much, and then she was gone, and I didn't even get anything back. _He_ got the money, and a daughter. _I_ got a pat on the back in sympathy."

"That's insane," Ferb said. "She grew up and found somebody to love, as you did. There's nothing wrong there." _Keep him talking_ , Ferb thought. _As long as he’s talking, everyone’s still alive and unhurt._

"No. She loved me. I was her brother, her Little Billy, and she was my Sammy. We would have been best friends forever. But after _he_ stole her, I went on, and found Karen. And then _this_ selfish whore," he pointed at Gretchen again, "stole Karen and my daughters away too. Karen left me because of her, and took Becky and Anna. I lost my job because of her. Even my own mother disowned me because of her. But when I come back a multi-millionaire, Karen and the girls will take me back quickly enough. Santa returns, bringing money - of course they’ll take it."

"Karen didn't leave because of Gretchen. She left because you _sold your niece into slavery_ ," Ferb said emphatically. "Nana Walker didn't disown you because of Gretchen. It was because of what _you_ did. The common factor in all of this isn't Gretchen, it's _you_."

"How dare you, Fletcher? How _dare_ you!?"

He picked up the gag again and forced it into Ferb’s mouth, buckling it tightly. “Just for that, Fletcher, you won’t even get a chance to stop what I’m doing to this selfish little bitch here for a while,” Bill said.

He picked up a box and dropped it on the table, then went to Gretchen and roughly pulled the top of her dress down, exposing her bra. He pushed the bra cups aside and rubbed her nipples, saying, “Wakey wakey...”

Bill turned around and pulled two small alligator clips out of the box, thin wires trailing behind. He clipped one onto each of Gretchen’s nipples, causing her to give a muffled cry through her gag.

With an evil grin, he looked at Ferb and said, “See, now you could have prevented all this if you’d just cooperated. But no, you had to be tough. Now see what you’re doing to her.”

Ferb pulled at the ropes binding him to the chair, but there wasn’t enough slack for him to work with. _I hope Perry got the message._

Bill pulled a small power pack out of the box, and plugged the wires from each clip into it. “Let’s turn this on and see what happens, shall we?” he said. With a slight twist of the knob, Gretchen gave a muted shriek and shook from side to side, trying to throw the clips off. Under other circumstances, Ferb would have been fascinated by the jiggling this caused, but right now he was too busy watching the woman he loved suffer at the hands of this madman.

“That’s setting one,” Bill said. “Let’s try two.”

He twisted the knob again, and Ferb could hear Gretchen trying to beg for mercy through the gag.

With a smug grin, Bill said, “Once we get to five, I’ll give you a chance to change your mind.”

A loud knock came from the front room, followed by a voice. "Danville police! We have a report there’s a problem here?"

* * *

Perry watched from the shadows. He hadn't been sure he could get in and disable Bill before the man could injure Ferb or Gretchen, so he'd called in the police. If nothing else, they could distract Bill enough for Perry to take him down. He’d been about three seconds away from stepping in anyway, hoping Bill’s preoccupation with his torture would be enough, when the knock on the door came.

Bill glared at his captives before going into the front room. Perry slipped out of the shadows and turned off the power box, and was rewarded by a bright look on Ferb's face as Gretchen slumped in relief.

Perry jumped up on Ferb's lap, then reached around and loosened the gag. Ferb spat it out and said, "Thanks, Perry."

* * *

Danville Police Sergeant Matthew Emerson wasn't really expecting a response when he knocked at the door, and was surprised when a man in a trenchcoat answered.

Matthew rested his hand on the butt of his service pistol, and said, "Hello, there was a report of a disturbance in this area. May we," he gestured toward the other two officers with him, "come in and look around?"

"No, you may not," the man said.

From inside the house, a British voice yelled, "Help! Police! We've been kidnapped!"

The man jumped and started to pull a gun out of his coat pocket, only to stop when he realized that all three police officers were pointing their pistols at him. With a sickly smile, he let the gun fall back into his pocket and put his hands in the air.


	12. Judgement Day

Vanessa meekly followed Monty into the judge's chambers. Judge Jonathan Santiago, head of the indenture courts in the Tri-State Area, had called Monty, Vanessa, and Perry in early this morning for some unstated matter. She was grateful Monty had let her have an old T-shirt to wear on the trip; he was scared enough that he'd been caught that she'd half expected him to forbid her from wearing clothes, even when going outside OWCA headquarters. She rolled her shoulders as much as she could with her hands cuffed behind her back; Monty, apparently detecting the change in tension on the leash, turned and glared at her, then pointed her at the floor as he took a seat. She knelt down next to him, as expected. Perry had arrived before them, and nodded at them from his seat.

The judge, a middle-aged Hispanic man with a receding hairline and thin black mustache, looked at them. "Just a moment. We're waiting for one more person before we get started," he said.

The door opened, and Marshal Francis Monogram came in. "So, what is this case you wanted to see me about, your honor?" he asked, then paused as he saw the people waiting for him.

"Have a seat, Marshal," the judge said, and Francis sat warily. "I've called you here for issues with two separate crimes that have come to my attention as head of oversight for the Tri-State Area’s Indenture Transfer Facility. We'll start with the newer one first. Last August, there was a break-in in the computers for the ITF, and bids were randomly - or pseudo-randomly, most likely - rejected. Were it not for a lucky discovery by Edward Kurtz, the system administrator, it would have been ignored as a hardware error."

The judge pushed a button on his intercom, and said, "Send Mr. Kurtz in, please."

Eddie came in through a side door, looking extremely uncomfortable in a suit and tie.

"Mr. Kurtz, please describe what you found in the August intrusion?"

Eddie closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "The original attackers hid their tracks behind a machine in Brazil that had its logs wiped, but somebody attempted to cover it up more thoroughly. With some research, I found that the second cover-up attempt came from..." He paused, and looked at Perry guiltily. "Agent P's computer."

Monty, Vanessa, and Francis all looked at Perry, startled. Perry nodded.

"After I realized that," Eddie continued, "I looked further back into the previous break-in that Agent P had helped investigate. And when I did, I discovered that the evidence used to convict Ms. Doofenshmirtz had been planted by Agent P, and that the original break-in we were investigating had actually been done by Agent P as well."

"You are certain on this?" the judge asked.

Eddie said, "Extremely. Once I realized what I was looking for, it was plain as day."

"Well, I for one am shocked - shocked! - that an OWCA agent would be involved in such nefarious shenanigans," Francis said.

"Thank you, Mr. Kurtz. Please have a seat.” Pressing the intercom, he said, “Send Mr. Doofenshmirtz in," the judge said. Eddie turned and sat on the far side of the room, away from the Monograms, and a moment later Vanessa's uncle, Roger Doofenshmirtz, came in. He gave Vanessa a smile and a wink.

The judge continued, "So just after Mr. Kurtz contacted me with this information, as head of oversight for the transfer facility, I received a message from former Mayor Doofenshmirtz, saying he had evidence of wrongdoing within the OWCA. Roger?"

With a politician's grin, Roger began, "My brother contacted me with evidence that his daughter had been framed - a videorecording of Lieutenant Monty Monogram ordering Agent P to falsify evidence to wrongly convict her. I called Judge Santiago and gave him a copy of the recording. More recently, I received another recording from him, where Marshal Francis Monogram claimed to have called in a favor to squash the investigation into the evidence falsification. I also gave Judge Santiago that recording, and gave copies of both recordings to Mayor Wilson."

"Thank you, Mr. Doofenshmirtz. Please have a seat." Roger sat next to Perry as the judge pressed the intercom button, and said, "Please send in the bailiff...and the rest." Vanessa wondered who 'the rest' were, but her attention was drawn to the judge speaking to her.

"I've spoken to Mayor Wilson as well, and based on the evidence, she's issued a full pardon for you, Ms. Doofenshmirtz. Do you accept the pardon? There is no implication of wrongdoing on your part for doing so.”

"What, really?" Vanessa said. “Yes, of course, I accept it.”

“Bailiff, please remove her cuffs and collar."

The bailiff stepped over and gestured at her to stand up. After she did, he unfastened the cuffs on her wrists, then held up a controller to her collar. He pressed several buttons, and the collar unlocked with a *click*. The bailiff removed it from her.

"Thank you!" Vanessa said.

The judge smiled and pointed her to a chair next to her uncle. "Stay, I suspect you'll want to watch the rest of this."

Monty and Francis both looked highly uncomfortable; Perry had a vicious grin on his face.

Monty spoke up and said, "Even if your evidence is good, we aren't subject to your court. We're OWCA."

"Correct. You're mine," a voice behind them said. Everyone turned to look at the woman in uniform in the back of the room, flanked by four large men in Military Police uniforms. "Adjutant Acrostic, OWCA Judge Advocate General's Corps. After Judge Santiago called in about corruption in the JAG ranks, I was sent out to deal with this case. Lieutenant Monogram, you're under arrest for fraudulent indenture and perjury, among other charges. Marshal Monogram, you’re under arrest for interfering in an investigation and accessory to fraudulent indenture." The MPs stepped forward to take custody of them. With a thin smile, she added, "Oh, and Lieutenant Monogram - you'll wish you were a civilian soon enough. It seems that, under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, every sexual act with someone fraudulently indentured is a separate count of rape. The video files on your computer are good for at least thirty charges there."

“I didn’t do anything to the computers,” Monty said desperately as the MPs handcuffed him. “It was Agent P.”

“Agent P has chosen to testify against you in exchange for immunity from prosecution and release from OWCA control,” the adjutant said. She looked at the MPs and said, “Take them away.” Turning to Vanessa, she said, “We may need you to testify later. I’ll be in touch,” then followed the MPs and their prisoners out the door.

With a kindly smile, Roger handed Vanessa his cell phone. “There’s two more people we need to tell about this,” he said. “Call your father to come pick you up, and then call your mother to let her know.”

Vanessa dialed her father’s number, and he quickly picked up. “Roger? What is it? How did it go?”

“Dad?” Vanessa said, tears coming to her eyes.

“Vanessa! You’re free?”

“I’m free. You and Perry and Uncle Roger got me a pardon. Now I need a ride home.”

* * *

Ferb, Gretchen, and Mr. Campbell sat together in the courtroom, awaiting the judge’s return from the lunch recess. Phineas, Isabella, Linda, and Lawrence sat in the back, providing moral support for them. They were the first case of the afternoon session.

“All rise,” the bailiff said with a smile. “Tri-State Area Federal Indenture Court is now in session, Honorable Jonathan Santiago presiding.”

The judge came in and told them to sit, then looked up at the three of them. “I’ve read your brief, Isaac. Let me see if I’ve got this straight. Her uncle,” he pointed at Gretchen, “kidnapped the two of them and tried to force them to sign a renewal?”

“Correct, your honor,” Mr. Campbell said.

“And when the police rescued them,” the judge continued, holding up a piece of paper, “they found this badly-forged renewal contract?”

“Correct, your honor. Mr. Walker is awaiting trial for one count of false imprisonment for abducting Mr. Fletcher, one count of grand theft for abducting Ms. Schneider, one count of forgery for the document you’re holding, and sundry other charges.”

“And for some reason, instead of getting entered as evidence, this contract got entered into the indenture tracking system as legitimate?”

“Correct, your honor. We request that you cancel the contract as clearly fraudulent.”

“You had no intention of renewing the contract, Mr. Fletcher?”

Ferb spoke up. “None whatsoever, your honor. I’d have freed her earlier if I could.” He looked over at her. “I’d free her today if I could.”

Gretchen smiled thinly. _Don’t remind him of that, Ferb._

“Ms. Schneider, you did not wish to sign this contract?”

“Correct, your honor,” Gretchen said.

The judge sat back. “Isaac, if this didn’t have copious police reports backing it, I’d swear you’d made the whole thing up. I’ve said the idea of indenturing people to steal an inheritance is ludicrous, and that I'd never seen anyone forced to renew an indenture, and here you present me with a blatant example of both.”

“I’d really prefer not to have, under the circumstances, your honor.”

The judge laughed. “True enough. Okay. Given that both people who allegedly signed this contract claim they don’t want the contract renewed, the renewal contract is hereby void.” He banged his gavel. “But, let’s render it moot anyway. Gretchen Schneider, please rise.”

Gretchen stood up and looked up at the judge.

“It is the opinion of this court that your indenture serves no further useful purpose and should be terminated immediately.” He banged his gavel again, and said, “Bailiff, please remove her collar.”

Gretchen’s jaw dropped as the bailiff approached her with a small controller box. He held it to her collar, typed in a code, and with a *click* her collar unlocked. The bailiff plucked it from around her neck and placed it in a bin under his desk.

“Thank you, your honor!” she said.

“You’re a free woman now. What will you do now?” the judge asked, propping his head up on one arm.

“I need to make sure somebody knows I’m not going anywhere.” She turned toward Ferb. “Ferb? Will you marry me?”

He took her hands. “Gladly.” A cheer came up from Ferb’s family in the back of the room, causing the crowd to laugh.

“Congratulations to the two of you, then.” The judge sat forward and said, “Isaac, you and I need to talk. Call my secretary and make an appointment for lunch some day. I feel like I’ve just seen a unicorn, and I’m wondering how many others I’ve missed.

“Mr. Fletcher, Ms. Schneider, I’d like you to join me in my chambers for a moment. Is Mr. Phineas Flynn in the courtroom?”

Phineas said, “Here,” from the back of the room.

“Please join us as well, Mr. Flynn.”

* * *

The three of them followed the judge into his chambers, only to find Perry waiting for them. Taking a seat behind his desk, the judge gestured them toward chairs, and they sat.

“So, two issues we need to deal with. We have found out that you are aware that your pet platypus is an agent for the OWCA. However, for reasons I can’t go into, he is retiring, and will be accompanying you home.”

Ferb smiled as Phineas thanked the judge.

“The second issue is a bit more serious, I’m afraid. As part of the events that caused Agent P’s retirement, there was an investigation into a security breach in the Indenture Transfer Facility’s computer systems.”

Ferb began sweating. _He knows._

The judge sat back with a thin smile. “Now, for more reasons I can’t get into, the blame for this has fallen on somebody else, but it seems awfully suspicious that an attack on their computer systems took place on the day where Mr. Fletcher’s girlfriend’s contract was up for auction. We know that Agent P attempted to cover it up later, but he was dealing with his nemesis at the time of the original attack, and it wasn’t Mr. Fletcher, as he was at the facility at the time. This leaves very few people with motive, means, opportunity, and that Agent P would wish to protect, doesn’t it, Mr. Flynn?”

Phineas looked at him boldly. “It does, your honor.”

“Now, there’s no hard evidence that anyone but Agent P was involved, and I don’t wish to pursue this line of inquiry further for reasons of my own. But I ever hear about you folks being involved in anything like this again, I may dig out this case. And I don’t think any of us wants that. Do I make myself clear?”

Ferb said, “As crystal, your honour.” Gretchen, Phineas, and Perry agreed.

“Excellent,” the judge said. “I’m glad we’ve come to an understanding, then. Go celebrate your engagement.”


	13. Epilogue: Wedding Day

Gretchen had spent the night at Candace and Jeremy’s house, getting ready for today. Another summer was drawing to a close, and college started in a few weeks. And now, she and Ferb were preparing to start this new life together. Her dress hung on a form nearby, ready for her wedding day.

The months since her sudden freedom and engagement had been hectic: finishing their final year of high school, planning for college and a wedding, and political work on behalf of the IRC. Bill’s kidnapping attempt had caught the attention of the media, and a national discussion on underage indenture had happened. The primary effect had been the addition of a waiting period after signing the contract, giving three days for the parent or guardian to change their mind. Bill had testified on behalf of this law himself, as part of his plea deal; he’d said that he’d signed the contract on the spur of the moment, and then been unable to back out once he’d realized it was a mistake. There was talk of banning underage renewal contracts outright, or changing the inheritance laws to defer inheritance in case of indenture instead of skipping the person, but Gretchen didn’t think either of those was likely to happen; too many people with too much money liked things the way they were now.

The Doofenshmirtz case had hit the media at the same time, causing investigations into punitive indenture as well. Someone - Perry swore it wasn’t him - had leaked to a reporter that a secret agency had forged evidence of wrongdoing by an innocent young woman, forcing her into slavery to her ex-boyfriend who’d never gotten over her. Legislators were debating laws requiring that punitive indenture not be to any organization involved in the criminal’s capture, and that punitive indenture be required to be of a non-sexual nature. Government employee unions were fighting these bills, claiming that sexual access to indentured criminals was a perq of the job and could only be removed as part of contract negotiations.

But that was all past. She had a future to look forward to - in another three months, she turned nineteen and gained control of the money from her mother's, father's, and grandmother's estates. She started in the political science program at Danville University in another three weeks, with the intent of working for indenture reform. While she had a significant amount of money, it wasn’t enough to make a major difference politically, but it freed her from the need to make a living while she worked to end indenture.

And even that was more than she could think about right now. Right now, she had a wedding in a few hours. A commitment to Ferb, who'd been there for her ever since they were young.

"You ready for your wedding-day makeover?" Candace asked, poking her head in through the guest room door. "Isabella just got here with supplies."

"Yes," Gretchen said boldly. "Let's do this."

* * *

The wedding was held in the backyard of the Flynn-Fletcher house. Gretchen looked out through the kitchen window, carefully making sure Ferb couldn't see her yet. The guests were arriving - Karen and her daughters joining former Fireside girls and the rest of the Walker family on one side of the aisle, guests from England and across Danville on the other. As she watched, Jeremy seated Vanessa Doofenshmirtz and her father, Heinz, on Ferb's side. Vanessa, as it turned out, was friends with Perry and had been friends with Ferb many years before; they’d met up again in the media swirl around their cases, and then Gretchen had worked with the woman on a couple IRC lobbying efforts. Gretchen smiled, remembering Ferb’s reluctant confession of the massive crush he'd had on the older woman when he was ten.

_Whatever crush he may have had, I'm the one he's giving a ring to today. I'm not worried about his old crushes, any more than he needs to worry about the crush I used to have on Balthazar Horowitz._

Finally, the time came. The small bridal party gathered in the kitchen; the groomsmen lined up awaiting them. Perry, as ringbearer, walked down the aisle first, wearing a tuxedo and his trademark fedora.

Candace stepped out in her mint-green bridesmaid dress, belly swelling from her pregnancy. Jeremy held out his arm for his wife to take as they marched up the aisle. The two had married early the previous summer, and, now that Candace had graduated from college, were starting their family with a daughter due in three months.

Ginger, wearing lavender, took Baljeet’s arm and proceeded up the aisle next. Gretchen knew they were going to colleges on opposite sides of the country, but planned to make a long distance relationship work. She thought they just might do it, too, if only because neither of them was willing to fail at anything.

Isabella, wearing pale pink as maid of honor, patted Gretchen on the arm and joined Phineas, Ferb’s obvious choice for best man. Ferb had told her that Phineas was planning to propose tonight; Gretchen had told him that Isabella had been hoping for that ever since they’d scheduled the wedding date.

It was time. No one waited to walk her up the aisle; Isaac and Lawrence had both offered, but she’d declined. She was giving herself to Ferb, just as he was giving himself to her. She stepped out from the kitchen, her eyes on Ferb to see his reaction.

It was everything she could have hoped for. The dress had been custom-made by Candace, her final project for her fashion design class, and had received a well-earned A+ grade. A light lace pattern to give the white silk texture and emphasize her curves, an ingenious strapless design that stayed in place comfortably without tape, and a subtle lace window to reveal her cleavage without looking gaudy or tacky. Ferb’s jaw dropped, and Phineas laughed and whispered something into his ear. Ferb shook his head to clear his mind, and watched her approach with a look promising both a lifetime of love and a long, vigorous evening tonight. They were spending the night at her - soon to be their - house before heading up to Banff for their honeymoon.

She stepped up next to him, and whispered, “I see you like the dress.”

Ferb nodded almost-imperceptibly and barely hid a smirk.

Judge Santiago had asked to perform the ceremony. After his talk with Isaac and some investigation, he’d realized that he’d been mistaken on several occasions about involuntary renewals and indenture to steal inheritances. He’d contacted Gretchen to get some first-hand information on indenture, although he was careful to remain politically neutral.

“Dearly beloved,” he began, “we are gathered here to witness the marriage of two people who have changed many lives - including my own. Through everything they have done together, or that has been done to them, their love for each other has shined through like a beacon, guiding everyone to better themselves.”

The ceremony continued for a few minutes, Gretchen giving rote responses as needed as she pondered everything that had brought her to this point. She was sad that her father and grandmother were unable to see it, but happy that, despite all the pitfalls thrown at them, she and Ferb had made it through it all, together.

She turned to Ferb as they made their vows. Ferb went first:

“Gretchen, I promise to be yours and only yours, now and forever. You have taught me and been beside me through thick and thin. From this day forward, my goal is to make you the happiest woman on the planet, for as long as we both shall live.”

Gretchen smiled, took a deep breath, and began her own vows.

“Ferb, once I wore your collar, and the first thing I wanted to do when it was taken off was forge a new bond with you - a marriage bond. You are the love of my life, and I wish to be with you and only you, from this day forward.”

The judge smiled at the two of them. “By the powers vested in me by the Tri-State Area and the City of Danville, I proclaim you husband and wife. Now, kiss each other like you mean it.”

That, as it turns out, wasn’t a problem at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Many thanks for your support. I'd been worried about how well this would go over; this is now one of the most-read and most popular stories I've posted here. (Sex sells. I should have remembered that.)
> 
> Your time and attention are gifts; thank you for sharing them with me.


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